While the horse was feeding, the people began to assemble, and one of them whispered something to the old woman, which greatly excited her surprise. Mr. Park knew enough of the Foulah language, to discover that some of the men wished to apprehend and carry him to Ali, in hope of receiving a reward. He therefore tied up the corn, and to prevent suspicion that he had run away from the Moors, took a northerly direction. When he found himself clear of his attendants, he plunged again into the woods, and slept under a large tree. He was awakened by three Foulahs, who supposing him to be a Moor, pointed to the sun, and said it was time to pray. Coming to a path leading southwards, which he followed until midnight, he arrived at a small pool of rain water. Resting here for the night, the mosquitoes and flies prevented him from sleeping, and the howling of the wild beasts in the vicinity kept his horse in continual terror.
On the following morning, he came to a watering place belonging to the Foulahs, one of the shepherds invited him to come into his tent, and partake of some dates. There was just room enough in this tent to sit upright, and the family and furniture were huddled together in the utmost confusion. When Mr. Park had crept into it upon his hands and knees, he found in it a woman and three children, who with the shepherd and himself completely occupied the floor. A dish of boiled corn and dates was produced, and the master of the family, according to the custom of the country, first tasted it himself, and then offered a part to his guest. Whilst Mr. Park was eating, the children kept their eyes fixed upon him and no sooner had their father pronounced the word mazarini, than they began to cry; their mother crept cautiously towards the door, and springing out of the tent, was instantly followed by her children; so truly alarmed were they at the name of a Christian. Here Mr. Park procured some corn for his horse, in exchange for some brass buttons, and thanking the shepherd for his hospitality departed. At sunset he came into the road which led to Bambarra, and in the evening arrived at Wawra, a negro town belonging to Kaarta.
Now secure from the Moors, and greatly fatigued, Mr. Park meeting with a hearty welcome from the dooty, rested himself at this place. He slept soundly for two hours on a bullock's hide. Numbers assembled to learn who the stranger was, and whence he came; some thought him an Arab, others a moorish sultan, and they debated the matter with such warmth, that their noise at length awoke him. The dooty, however, who had been at Gambia, at last interposed, and assured them that he was certainly a white man, but from his appearance a very poor one.
In the afternoon, the dooty examined Mr. Park's bag, but finding nothing valuable, returned it and told him to depart in the morning. Accordingly Mr. Park set out, accompanied by a negro, but they had not proceeded above a mile, when the ass upon which the negro rode, kicked him off, and he returned, leaving Mr. Park to travel by himself. About noon he arrived at a town, called Dingyee, where he was hospitably entertained by an old Foulah.
When Mr. Park was about to depart on the following day, the Foulah begged a lock of his hair, because "white men's hair made a saphie, that would give to the possessor all the knowledge of white men." Mr. Park instantly complied with his request, but his landlord's thirst for learning was such, that he had cropped one side of his head, and would have done the same with the other, had not Mr. Park signified his disapprobation, and told him that he wished to preserve some of this precious ware.
After travelling several days, without meeting with any occurrence of particular note. Mr. Park arrived at Doolinkeaboo, where the dooty, at his request, gave him a draught of water, which is usually given as an earnest of greater hospitality. Mr. Park promised himself here a good supper and a comfortable bed, but he had neither the one nor the other. The night was rainy and tempestuous, and the dooty limited his hospitality to the draught of water. The next morning, however, when the dooty was gone to the fields, his wife sent Mr. Park a handful of meal, which, mixed with water, served him for breakfast.
He departed from Doolinkeaboo in company with two negroes, who were going to Sego. They stopped at a small village, where an acquaintance of one of the negroes invited them to a public entertainment. They distributed with great liberality a dish called sinkatoo, made of sour milk, meal, and beer. The women were admitted into the society, a circumstance which had never come under Mr. Park's observation before; every one drank as he pleased; they nodded to each other when about to drink, and on setting down the calabash, commonly said berha (thank you.) Both men and women were in a state of intoxication, but were far from being quarrelsome.
Mr. Park and the two negroes then resumed their journey, and passed several large villages, where the former was constantly taken for a Moor, and with his horse, which he drove before him, afforded much mirth to the Bambarrans. "He has been at Mecca," says one; "you may see that by his clothes." Another asked him if his horse was sick? A third wished to purchase it, &c., and even the negroes at last seemed ashamed of his company. They lodged that night at a small village, where Mr. Park procured victuals for himself and corn for his horse, in exchange for a button, and was told that he should see the Niger, which the negroes call Joliba, or the Great Water, early on the following day. The thought of seeing the Niger in the morning, and the buzzing of the mosquitoes, kept Mr. Park awake the whole of the night, he had saddled his horse, and was in readiness before daylight, but as the gates of the village were shut on account of the wild beasts, he was obliged to wait until the people were stirring. At length, having departed, they passed four large villages, and in a short time saw the smoke over Sego.
On approaching the town, Mr. Park was fortunate enough to overtake the fugitive Kaartans, to whose kindness he had been so much indebted in his journey through Bambarra. They readily agreed to introduce him to the king, and they rode together through some marshy ground, where, as he was anxiously looking round for the river, one of them exclaimed, "Geo affili" see the water! and looking forwards, Mr. Park says, "I saw, with infinite pleasure, the great object of my mission, the long sought for majestic Niger, glittering to the morning sun, as broad as the Thames at Westminster, and flowing slowly to the eastward. [*] I hastened to the brink, and having drank of the water, lifted up my fervent thanks in prayer to the great Ruler of all things, for having thus far crowned my endeavours with success."
[Footnote: We cannot reconcile this statement of Park with the subsequent discovery of Lander, who established the fact, that the Niger empties itself into the Bight of Benin. The Niger, flowing to the eastward, could not possibly have the Bight of Benin for its estuary, nor is it laid down in any of the recent maps as having an easterly direction.]